Hearts on Fire
by Abicion
Summary: Strong desire.


Akane crashed to Fuuka Academy's courtyard on her back. When her eyes rolled upward, she saw the HiME Star filling most of the visible sky with its mass and painting the landscape with a permanent crimson sunset. Her twin weapons disappeared from her sides as her energy waned, and Hari groggily toppled to his belly a few feet away from her. Her uniform was damaged, sporting several torn spots with blackened edges. Combining this with the faint smoke that dissipated from her entire frame made it look as if she had barely escaped a furnace with her life.

Her pathetic attempt at a surprise attack had ended in failure. She was by no means a cruel person by nature, but circumstances had forced her to take drastic measures. She never denied she was the underdog going into a battle against a seemingly invincible dragon, but she at least had to try. All she could do was question why she was left with such unequal footing. She could have been one of the more ridiculous (but undoubtedly more powerful) HiME, trained from birth as a crossdressing ninja, or partnered with a magical unicorn that could turn reality itself into its weapon. Instead, she was a modest schoolgirl armed with basic melee weapons and a four-legged vacuum cleaner. Fate had a sadistic sense of humor.

Kazuya, or who she at first assumed was Kazuya through her blurred eyesight, soon ran to her side and supported her in his arms. His mouth was moving, but she couldn't make out anything he was saying over the ringing in her ears. He was shouting in desperation, and he clearly looked concerned for her, but she felt even worse. With her defeat would come his inevitable death. It was the curse all HiME bore, and she couldn't bear the thought of losing him.

Finally, she regained enough of her senses to weakly speak. She almost began to weep.

"Kazu, all I ever wanted was for you to be safe."

Kazuya nodded assuringly as he offered her a comfortingly glance. Enough of her hearing returned for her to discern what he said next.

"I know, Akane. You tried your best."

Her eyes looked away, ashamed to acknowledge him as she thought aloud.

"Why can't I win?"

Kazuya felt his heart being wrenched by this simple question. It wasn't fair. Why was such a kind-hearted girl ever thrown into this horrible situation? Why did she have to have the one thing she loved the most torn away from her? After keeping his eyes shut in grief for some time, he eventually tried to contort his mouth into a more cheerful expression. He replied with the first thing that popped in his mind.

"Because you're not supposed to."

This brought a tiny look of confusion to Akane's tired eyes, prompting him to elaborate further. She had never intentionally hurt anyone for as long as he had known her, and now she wouldn't have to.

"You're not a killer. You're the sweet and caring girl I fell in love with."

She finally returned his gaze with a bittersweet smile as she allowed her tears to flow. As he brought her closer to his chest, he slowly gazed across the courtyard to her opponent. There was only one way Akane would ever be able live happily ever after with him.

Mai stood several yards away from her fallen adversary. Like Akane, she never wanted things to come to this. She had only summoned Kagutsuchi to defend herself after being ambushed at the height of Akane's apparent madness. There was a horrified look in her eyes, and her Child gently hovered in the air just behind her shoulder as he awaited her next command. She was brought out of her waking nightmare only by Kazuya's distant shouting. Somehow, his words sounded actually sounded more inspirational than they did impatient.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Finish us off!"

She softly gasped toward him. She couldn't imagine herself doing as he requested, not unless she was absolutely forced to. The battle was over, and the enemy had obviously surrendered. She couldn't even blame Akane for what she had done.

"I... I can't. It's too much."

Kazuya's voice became more angered as Akane groggily dozed in his arms.

"You have to!"

Mai clenched her arms into determined fists as she stepped a foot or so forward. Her own eyes were beginning to grow moist when she raised her tone to match his.

"There has to be a better way! We can work together and find a way out of this!"

Kazuya lifted his head to address the HiME Star. His especially close connection to Akane had made him as familiar with the rules of combat as the fighters themselves, and his resolve was unwavering.

"It's too late for that! Reito is going to use this thing to kill all of us if we don't do what he says, and you have a better chance at stopping him than Akane does!"

Mai's brave demeanor abruptly sank. As she blankly stared toward her feet, every ominous warning she had ever been given about the fate of the world echoed through her head. It was her destiny to hunt and kill other HiME's Childs, taking the life of the person the corresponding HiME cared about the most in the process. If she failed to uphold her responsibility, the entire human race was forfeit. It all boiled down to a simple matter of sacrificing a few to spare the lives of billions more. However, she wouldn't make a decision until she watched the following exchange occur.

Akane opened her eyes from what seemed to be a brief catnap. She at first turned her head toward Mai, then gazed back at Kazuya with a puzzled expression.

"Kazu, what are you doing... ?"

Kazuya answered without hesitation. A playful smile crossed his lips, and his words held a soothing quality.

"Don't worry. If you have to lose, I'm not going to leave you behind."

An even brighter smile than before appeared on Akane's face. She rolled her head into his shoulder and closed her eyes again as she whispered in return.

"I love you."

The two shared a short kiss together, then closely embraced in each other's arms. They were terrified of what was to come, but they had each other. Sensing his mother's intent, even Hari made no attempt to fight back or escape.

Mai winced in psychological agony as she considered her options. She could end everything here, now, and send both members of the forlorn couple off of the mortal plane with relative best wishes, or she could wait until another, much less compassionate HiME came along and capitalized on Akane's constant helplessness, probably forever separating her from the person she loved in the process. With a heavy heart, she finally muttered under her breath.

"Kagutsuchi..."

She turned her head away and squeezed her eyes shut before finishing her command. It would be too horrible to watch.

"Fire."

She heard her Child inhale a mighty breath before blasting a single monumental fireball in Akane's direction. Then all she heard was silence. When she opened her eyes and glanced forward, all that remained of her targets was a plume of smoke and three tiny clouds of shimmering emerald particles. The evidence of the crime soon faded into the air, leaving behind only a few scorch marks on the courtyard's paved ground.

Mai lowered her head again and grit her teeth, now suffering from subdued anger. Even after considering everything that put her in this predicament, she was still disgusted in herself. She was brought out of her vicious cycle of self-loathing only by the sound of a pair of hands clapping. She immediately snapped her head toward the shadows that surrounded most of Fuuka Academy's facade.

Reito stepped onto the scene. His dark school uniform left most of his body obscured by the gothic atmosphere. His face was his most visible feature, and it was adorned by an ingenious grin.

"Congratulations, Mai. You're one step closer to becoming my true princess. Now only a few candidates remain."

Mai couldn't keep her attention on him for long. Her eyes drifted back to the ground, where they stayed for a small eternity. Her emotions stabilized before she spoke in a sad voice. The image of Akane and Kazuya comforting one another in their final moments haunted her mind.

"They were in love..."

She then gazed back toward Reito. The anger she held for herself changed its direction toward toward him when she raised her voice. It was ultimately his fault things had to end this way for Akane.

"She didn't fight for pride. She didn't fight for power. She didn't fight so she could go around saying she owned someone. She fought because she wanted to protect someone she cared for with all of her heart!"

Her words became stronger as she planted her feet further into the ground. She would have turned all of her power on him if she didn't know he always had some clever way of defending himself.

"They were in love. They would have been happy no matter what happened as long as they were together. And you made me murder them for your stupid game!"

Reito was only amused by her tone. In his ageless experience, any amount of human tension could be worn down with the right amount of stress. He casually shrugged and chuckled to himself when he replied.

"Think of it as a mercy killing. Their relationship never would have survived in this filthy world."

A hint of humanity then appeared in his eyes. Of course, Mai interpreted it as nothing more than an insulting attempt at humanity.

"A million different variables could have separated them and broken both of their hearts. Such foolish idealism never lasts for long. With the amount of suffering you've seen, you of all people should understand that."

He then tilted his head, changing his expression to a sweet smile. Sickeningly sweet.

"But you've prevented all of that, and now their souls will be forever united in the fires of Hell. Aren't you glad you helped them?"

Mai's boiling demeanor never changed. Reito didn't seem bothered by this, however, and his original smirk soon returned. He began to turn away when he spoke again.

"In any case, my offer still stands. Once you've made up your mind, you know where I'll be waiting."

He then wandered back into the shadows, gradually fading from Mai's sight.

Mai narrowed her eyes in contempt as he walked away. This meeting had left her at a crossroads. She had the opportunity become Reito's wife, a sort of living goddess who would help him rule the world in whatever way pleasured him. It was an opportunity she had always detested, but now the proposal carried new ramifications.

As Mai willed Kagutsuchi to disappear from the sky, a new resolve began to materialize out of her scattered thoughts. Akane and Kazuya wouldn't have wanted to see her stoop that low. She was sure of it. They would have cheered her on find a better solution, and their sacrifice would mean nothing if she didn't. They had at least given her a valuable advantage, as she now had leeway toward building false trust with Reito. For their sake, she had to stop him.

She left the courtyard with a look of determination on her face.


End file.
